Concrete form



Dec. 6; 1938.

W. A. GURTLER CONCRETE Pom-1 4 sheetsheet 1 Filed OctA 18,

INVENTOR ATTORNEY DeCf 6, 193,8- i W A. GURTLER 2,139,078

CONCRETE FORM Filed oct. 18, 1935 l 4 sheets-sheet 2 |N\v/ENTVCI)R mgmBY ATToNEY Dec. 6,1938. w. A. GURTLER CONCRETE FORM Filed oci. la, 19554 sheets-sheet 5 ATTQRNEY WA A. GURTLEF; 2,139,078

CONCRETE FORM Dc. 6, 193s.

Filed oct. 1,8, 1955 4 sheets-Sheet 4.

.32a 5o aaa.

ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 6, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 19 claims.

This invention pertains to steel forms for moulding concrete culvertssuch as tunnels, sewers and the like'with specific reference to thecollapsible type of form which may be readily `collapsed and expanded inorder to expedite the movement of the form from one location to another.Moreover, the form of the present invention is disclosed by theaccompanying drawings for use in constructing arched culverts but itwill be understood that the novel features embodied in the presentinvention may be used in constructing a culvert of any cross-sectionalcontour. The arched type o-f form is shown by the accompanying drawingsmerely as a means of exemplication.

` One of the objects of the present invention is the provision of meanswhereby the top and side walls of the form, as well as the carrier, maybe moved in a vertical direction with respect to the supporting wheelsin order to collapse the form from a completed concrete section orexpanded in alignment with the proposed culvert to be formed.

Another object of the invention is the provision of means whereby theside walls of the form may be moved outwardly of the carrier during theexpanding movement of the form. A

Another object of the invention is the provision of cantilevered sideWalls.

It may so develop that the rails, employed to guide the form along theproposed line of construction, are not in horizontal alignment and it istherefore a further object of the invention to utilize the collapsing`and expanding mechanism tol provide a lateral adjustment to the form..

A still further object of the invention is the provision in the sidewalls of the form to compensate for the hydrostatic forces exerted uponthe side walls by the plastic concrete thereby providing an even surfacebetween the precast concrete invert and the concrete side walls oi theculvert.

I These and other objects will become apparent to those skilled in theart by referring to the accompanying drawings which form a part of thepresent specification, in which: I

Figure 1 shows a vertical, cross-sectional view taken through asteelforrn, in expanded position before the top portion of the culvertVhas been cast, embodying the vpreferred form of the improvements. of thepresent invention.

Figure 2 discloses a View similar to that sho-wn by Figure 1 exceptingthat the top portion of the 55 culvert has been cast and the steel formis shown in collapsed position ready to be moved to an advancedlocation.

Figure 3 shows a longitudinal view taken along the lines 3 3 of Figure1.

Figure 4, an enlarged sectional view taken along the lines 4 4 of Figurel, shows a portion of the collapsing and expanding mechanism when theform is in. expanded position.

Figure V5, an enlarged view taken along the lines 5 -5 of Figure 2,shows a portion of the collapsing and expanding mechanism when the formis in collapsed position.

Figure 6 shows an enlarge-d View taken along the lines @-16 of Figure 3.

Figure 7, an enlarged view taken along the lines 'I-l' of Figure 1,shows the preferred means of retaining the side walls in expandedposition. Figure 8, an enlarged view taken along the lines 8-8 of Figurel, shows the method employed for imparting the initial outwardhorizontal movement to the side Walls during the expanding ofthe steelform as. well as allowing the final inward horizontal movement of theside walls during the collapse of the form.

Figure 9, an yenlarged view taken along the lines 9-9 of Figure 3,shows` the preferred mechanism employed to control the collapsing andexpanding movement of the form.

Referring now in. detail to the drawings wherein like referencecharacters indicate like parts the carrier, comprising the supportingstructure for the form and generally designated as I, has a plurality ofspaced sill members 2 extending 1ongitudinally of the carriersubstantially the entire length thereof. posts 3, extending between andsecured to the sill members 2, are connected together adjacent theirupper portion by means of the transverse cross bars 4. Angles 5 securedto the vertical posts 3, intermediate the height thereof, assists inmaintaining the posts 3 in spaced alignment. Braces Ii, reinforcing thecarrier against lateral stresses, are connected to the angles 5 adjacentthe medial line of the form and diverge upwardly to be con: nected tothe gusset plates l. The plates 1 which are secured to the carrieradjacent the extremities of the cross bars. 4 and pDStS 3 have a D01'-tion 'la projecting outwardly from the carrier I beyond the posts 3 andabove the plane of the cross bars 4; Angular braces 8 and struts 9 areemployed to connect the posts 3 together and thereby reinforce thecarrier I against longitudinal stresses.

The top wall I0 of the form, preferably comprising an integral part ofthe carrier I, extends Spaced vertically disposed side across the top ofthe carrier and includes a plurality of arcuate top beams II spacedlongitudinally ofthe carrier I and overlying, in spaced re'- lation, thecross bars 4. The top beams I I attached to the portion 'la of thegusset plates 1 are connected to the cross bars 4 adjacent the verticalmedial line of the form by means of the spacers I2. Channel shaped ribsI4 extend between and are secured to the arcuate angular members I3which are supported by the top beams II. Completing the top wall of theform is a lagging plate I5 overlying and secured to the ribs I4.

Spaced outwardly of the side posts 3 of the carrier I are arcuate sidewalls I6 suspended from adjacent the top portion of the carrier andproviding a continuation of the top wall Il). The side walls arepivotally attached, inwardly of their vertical neutral axis, to theportion 'Ia` of the gusset plate 1 by means of the pins I'I therebyproviding a tendency for the side wall to move inwardly toward thecarrier I. The side Walls include a plurality of longitudinally spaced ftrusses having an offset inner chord member I8 and an arcuate outerchord member I9 secured together at their extremities by the gussetplates 20. Diagonal bracing 2l 1s employed to retain the inner chordmembers I8 and the outer chord members I9 in spaced relation. Extendinglongitudinally of the side Walls and located between the inner and outerchord members are whaling channels 22 connecting the trusses togetherintermediate their vertical ends. Attached to the outer chord members I9are arcuate angular members 23 having longitudinally disposed ribs 24and 24a extending therebetween and secured thereto. Lagging plates 25,overlying and attached to the ribs 24 and 24a, are in arcuate alignmentwith the lagging plate I5 of the top wall I0 and have a portion 25aextending beyond the ribs 24a. Spaced inwardly of the portion 25a of thelagging plates 25 are liners 26 extending longitudinally of the sidewalls and connect- 4 ing the lower portion of the trusses together.

When the side walls have been moved outwardly of the carrier to thefully expanded position it will be observed, by referrring to Figure 1of the drawings, that the portion 25a of the lagging plates 25 has beenforced inwardly of the side Walls toward the liners 26. This stress isplaced in the portion 25a of the lagging plates in order that when thehydrostatic forces created by the plastic concrete tends to force theside walls inwardly the portion 25a will, due to the short leveragebetween the end of the portion 25a and the adjacent rib 24a, remainagainst the precast invert. By thus compensating for the hydrostaticiorces exerted upon the side walls of the form the joint between theprecast invert and the newly cast concrete side walls will result in asmooth surface.

Plates I8a, secured to the inner chord members 48 and extendingoutwardly of the side walls I6 to a position between the side posts 3 ofthe carrier I, acts as guides to the lower portion of the side wallsduring the collapsing and expanding movement of the form.

The side walls are moved to their iinal expanded position and retainedfully expanded by a plurality of compressive members, preferably screwjacks, 2'I which are secured to the outer surface of the posts 3intermediate the height thereof and extending outwardly of the carrierI. The screw jacks 2'I have a portion 21a adapted to engage the buflingplates 28 secured to the inner chord members I8 of the side walltrusses. It will be noted that the side walls form a cantilever due tothe supporting pivotal connection between the side walls and the carrieradjacent the top portion thereof' and the jacks 2'I located intermediatethe vertical height of the side walls.

The carrier is transported from one location to another by means of thewheels 29 adapted to travel upon the rails 30. The Wheels 29 arerotatably mounted on eccentric axles generally designated as 3|. It willbe observed from the following description that the form comprising acarrier I, top wall I0 and spaced side walls I 6 is collapsed andexpanded solely by means of the vertical movement of the supportingwheels and associate members. The wheels 29 are spaced at convenientintervals longitudinally of the carrier between the sill members 2. Theeccentric axles 3I comprise spaced levers 32, cams 33, pins 34 andbearing rods 35. The cams 33 are of suicient diameter to t the bore ofthe wheels 29 and preferably of a length equal to the thickness of thehubs 31 of the wheels. The spaced levers 32, positioned between the sillmembers 2 and the opposite sides of the wheels 29, have a portion 32aprojecting above the top plane of the sill members the purpose of whichwill be hereinafter explained. The pins 34 located at a position spacedfrom the center of the cams 33 extends through the cams and spacedlevers 32 and are retained in position by the webs 2a of the sillmembers 2. Bearing rods 35, located on the opposite side of the centerline of the cams 33 from the pins 34, extend through the webs 2a of thespaced sill members 2, spaced levers 32 and cams 33 providing a pivotalconnection between the wheels 29 and the carrier I. It will be notedfrom the preceding description that the wheels 29 are adapted to rotateon the cams 33 while the form is supported by the wheels and the bearingrods 35 through the medium of the spaced levers 32.

Extending longitudinally on each side of the carrier and positionedabove the sill members 2 are spaced operating bars 36 and 36a whichcontrol the collapsing and expanding movement of the form. The operatingbars are slidably' connected to the opposite sides of the vertical posts3 by means of the guide clips 31. Secured to and spaced at intervalslongitudinally of the operating bars 36 and 36a are bolts 50 extendingbeyond the sides of the bars and engaging the slots 38 of the levers 32.Due to the Weight of the carrier I, top wall I0 and spaced side walls I6being transmitted to the wheels 29 through the spaced levers 32 atensional force will be created.

within the bars 36 and 36a.

Supports 39, extending above the sill membersV 2 adjacent the one endthereof, are secured to the webs 2a of the sills and provide a journalfor the longitudinally disposed screws 40. Attached to one end of thescrew 40, in juxtaposition to the supports 39, are ratchet jacks 4Iadapted to impart a rotatory motion to the screws 40. The nuts 42,located on the opposite side of the support from the ratchet jack, areprovided with oppositely disposed projections 42a engaging the slot 38in the adjacentl levers 32 and the spaced operating bars 36 and 36a.

Secured to the outer surface of the operating bars 36a are a pluralityof wedges 43 positioned to engage the wedges 44 which are attached tothe outer surface of the inner chords I8 of the side walls therebyproviding the initial outward horizontal movement of the side wallsduring the expanding movement of the form. The wedges 43 and 44 willalso permit the final inward horicollapse of the form.

` The operation of the form is as follows: Assuming the form is incollapsed position and advanced to a new location and it is desired toexpand the form in order to cast a section of the culvert. Bymanipulating the ratchet jacks 4l a rotatory motion will be imparted tothe screws 40 thereby providing a horizontal movenient, in a directiontoward the supports 39, to the nuts 42 and operating bars 36 and 36a.The horizontal movementl of the operating bars will move the wedges 43beneath the wedges 44 and thus imparting the initial outward movement ofthe side walls about the pins l1. The horizontal movement of theoperating bars will also create a rotatory motion, in acounter-clockwise direction, to the spaced levers 32 about the bearingrods 35 and consequently a vertical motion to the wheels 29 in respectto the carrier. 'Ihe Vertical movement of the wheels 29 will force thecarrier I, together with the attached top wall In and spaced side wallsI6, to move upwardly. If it is found that the form is not in alignmentwith the precast section of the culvert it may be shifted laterally bythe manipulation of either of the ratchet jacks 4|.

When the top wall of the form has been positioned in alignment with theproposed line of construction the compression members or screw jacks 21are rotated thereby forcing the side walls outwardly away from thecarrier. This additional movement of the side walls will space thewedges 44 away from the wedges 43.

After the concrete has been poured and set suiiciently to become selfsustaining a reversal of the above enumerated steps will place the formin collapsed position.

It will of course be understood by those skilled in the art that two ofthe present forms may be connected together and operated by the one setof ratchet jacksand further, that a number of changes may be made to theconstruction as disclosed by the accompanying drawings without departingfrom the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described the invention what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a concrete form, in combination, side walls, framing memberscomprising a portion of the side walls, a lagging plate secured to saidframing members, and a liner member extending longitudinally of the sidewalls adjacent the lower portion thereof; said liner member being spacedinwardly of the lagging plate thereby allowing the lower edge of thelagging plate to spring inwardly when forced into contact with an invertso as to compensate for hydrostatic pressure due to the filling of theform which will tend to move the lagging plate inwardly of the invert.

2. In a concrete form, in combination, a carrier, top and side wallssecured to the carrier, spaced levers pivotally connected to saidcarrier having wheels eccentrically journaled therebetween, and meansslidably mounted on the carrier and connected to the spaced levers.

3. In a concrete form, in combination, a carrier, top and side wallssecured to the carrier, wheels mounted on eccentric axles, and barsslidably associated with said carrier and pivotally associated with saidaxles for selectively raising and lowering the form.

4. In a concrete form, in combination, a carrier, top and side wallssecured to the carrier, wheels mounted on eccentric axles secured to thecarrier, and means slidably connected to the carrier and pivotallyconnected to said axles for expanding and collapsing the form.

5. In a concrete form, in combination, a carrier, top and side wallssecured to the carrier, wheels mounted on eccentric axles secured to thecarrier, and longitudinally extending bars slidably connected to theaxles and carrier adapted to selectively expand and collapse the form.

6. In a concrete form, in combination, a carrier, top and side wallssecured to the carrier, wheels mounted beneath the carrier, barsconnected to the wheels adapted to raise and lower the form, wedges onsaid side walls, said bars having wedges adapted to engage the wedges onthe side walls for providing a horizontal movement to the side walls.

7. In a concrete form, in combination, a carrier, top and side wallspivotally secured to the carrier adjacent the top portion thereof,wheels mounted beneath the carrier, means extending longitudinally ofthe carrier connected to the wheels and adapted to selectively expandand collapse the form; said means providing a horizontal movement to theside walls.

8. In a concrete form, in combination, a carrier, top and side wallssecured to the carrier, spaced sill members extending longitudinally ofthe carrier axles extending between said sills, wheels mounted on saidaxles, levers pivotally connected to the sills and secured to the axles,and a bar extending longitudinally of the carrier connected to thelevers; said bar adapted to impart a rotary motion to the levers therebyraising and lowering the form.

9. In a concrete form, in combination, a carrier, top and side Wallspivotally secured to the carrier, spaced sill members extendinglongitudinally of the carrier, axles extending between said sills andpivotally connected thereto, wheels rotatably mounted on said axles,spaced levers pivotally connected to the sills and secured to saidaxles, and a bar extending longitudinally of the carrier connected tothe levers in a plane above the wheels; said bar being slidably mountedon the carrier and adapted to impart a rotary motion to the leversthereby raising and lowering the form.

10. In a concrete form, in combination, a carrier, top and side wallssecured to the carrier, spaced sill members extending longitudinally ofthe carrier, wheels interposed between said sills, levers pivotallyconnected to the sills and connected to the wheels, and a bar extendinglongitudinally of the carrier slidably connected to said levers adjacentthe upper portion thereof; said bar adapted to impart a rotary motion tothe levers thereby raising and lowering the form.

l1. In a concrete form, in combination, a carrier having spaced sillmembers and vertically disposed posts secured to said sill members, atop wall overlying and Vconnected to said posts, spaced side wallspivotally secured to said carrier adjacent the top portion of the posts,wheels journaled on eccentric axles between said sill members, andlongitudinally extending bars connected to said axles for raising andlowering the A ing said form, and means connected to said axles forraising and lowering the form; wedges on said side walls adapted to beengaged by complementary wedges on `said means for imparting movement tosaid side walls transversely of said form. 1

13. In a concrete form, in combination, a carrier having spaced sillmembers and vertically disposed posts secured to said sill members, atop wall secured to the carrier adjacent the top portions of the posts,spaced side walls pivotally secured to the carrier adjacent thehorizontal extremities of the top wall, wheels journaled on eccentricaxles interposed between said sills, levers secured to said axlesinterposed between the wheels and sills, and longitudinally extendingbars pivotally connected to said levers.

14. In a concrete form, in combination, a carrier, a top wall secured toand overlying the carrier in spaced relation thereto, spaced side Wallspivotally securedto the carrier, and jacks secured to the carrierintermediate the height thereof adapted to engage the side walls` inabutting relation to retain said side walls in expanded position;` saidside walls comprising a lagging plate and a liner spaced inwardlytherefrom adjacent an edge portion thereof, thereby allowing the saidlagging plate to be urged inwardly of the form toward said liner whenforced into contact with an associated element so as to compensate forhydrostatic pressures due to the filling of the form.

15. In a concrete form, in combination, a carrier, side walls secured tosaid carrier, framing members comprising a portion of the side walls, alagging plate secured to said framing members outwardly thereof, a linersecured to said framing members adjacent the lower portion thereof beingspaced inwardly of said lagging plate to compensate for the hydrostaticforces exerted upon the side walls, and means extending outwardly of thecarrier engaging the side walls for retaining the side walls in expandedposition.

16. In a concrete form, in combination, a carrier, spaced side wallssupported by said carrier,

, means on said carrier adapted to slidably engage said side walls tomove said side Walls toward expanded position, and additional means onthe carrier for moving said side walls away from said first-namedY meansand retaining the side walls Iin fullyexpan'ded position; said vsidewalls comprising a lagging plate and a liner spaced inwardly therefromadjacent an edge portion thereof, thereby allowing the said laggingplate to be forced inwardly of the form toward said liner when urgedinto contact with an associated element so as to compensate forhydrostatic pressures due to the lling of the form.

17. In a concrete form, in combination, a carrier, a top wall secured toand overlying the carrier in spaced relation thereto, trussed side wallspivotally secured to the carrier adjacent the top portion thereof, andmeans rigidly secured to the carrier adapted to engage the side wallsinter-4 mediate the height thereof and in abutting relation thereto,said means acting as the sole means for retaining the said side walls inexpanded position; said side Walls comprising a lagging plate and aliner spaced inwardly therefrom adjacent an edge portion thereof,thereby allowing the said lagging plate to be forced inwardly of theform toward said liner when urged into contact with an associatedelement so as to compensate for hydrostatic pressures due to the fillingof the form.

18. In combination, a concrete form comprising a carrier, wheels mountedon eccentric: means secured to the carrier adjacent the lower portionthereof, and additional means slidably connected to said eccentric meansand carrier for raising and lowering the form.

19. In a concrete form, in combination, a side wall having a laggingplate, a member associated with said side wall adjacent anv edge of saidlagging plate, said member being spaced inwardly of Isaid lagging plate,thereby allowing the said edge of the lagging plate to be urged inwardlyof the form toward said member when forced into intimate contact with anassociated element so as to compensate for hydrostatic pressures due tthe filling of the form which will tend to move the lagging plateinwardly of the element.

` WILLIAM A. GURTLER.

